more on this theme     |     more from this thinker


Single Idea 9303

[filed under theme 24. Political Theory / D. Ideologies / 9. Communism ]

Full Idea

I do not believe that the concept of 'alienation' is all that applicable any more.

Gist of Idea

The concept of 'alienation' seems no longer applicable

Source

Lars Svendsen (A Philosophy of Boredom [2005], Ch.1)

Book Ref

Svendsen,Lars: 'A Philosophy of Boredom' [Reaktion Books 2005], p.36


A Reaction

Interesting but puzzling. If alienation is the key existential phenomenon of a capitalist society, why should it fade away if we remain capitalist? He is proposing that it has metamorphosed into boredom, which may be a different sort of alienation.


The 11 ideas from 'A Philosophy of Boredom'

You can't understand love in terms of 'if and only if...' [Svendsen]
We can be unaware that we are bored [Svendsen]
Boredom is so radical that suicide could not overcome it; only never having existed would do it [Svendsen]
The concept of 'alienation' seems no longer applicable [Svendsen]
We are bored because everything comes to us fully encoded, and we want personal meaning [Svendsen]
Modern Western culture suddenly appeared in Jena in the 1790s [Svendsen]
Death appears to be more frightening the less one has lived [Svendsen]
If subjective and objective begin to merge, then so do primary and secondary qualities [Svendsen]
Emotions have intentional objects, while a mood is objectless [Svendsen]
The profoundest boredom is boredom with boredom [Svendsen]
We have achieved a sort of utopia, and it is boring, so that is the end of utopias [Svendsen]